BJP Leader Annamalai Says Not In The Electoral Race
Chennai: BJP leader K Annamalai, who returned from poll campaigning in Kerala to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Chennai on Saturday, said he was not in the election race. The former Tamil Nadu chief of the BJP said that he was also not included in the list of possible candidates sent to the high command for approval of the April 23 elections as he chose to campaign this time. He could have contested from any constituency in Tamil Nadu had he decided to do so, but he stressed that his focus now is on campaigning for BJP and NDA candidates.
“I am not in the race or on the list. My duty in this election is to campaign for candidates in Tamil Nadu. Currently, the party has given me the responsibility of campaigning in Puducherry and Kerala till April 7 and thereafter in Tamil Nadu till April 23. This is the responsibility given to me by the party. I will fulfill this responsibility,” the former state chief told reporters on arrival at the airport from Kannur. he said.
A BJP source said that he, in his capacity as former president, was asked to attend a “closed meeting” of senior BJP leaders in the state core committee today. The meeting with the prime minister is aimed at discussing the upcoming elections and the state’s core committee consists of around ten senior leaders.
Asked at the airport why his name was not included in the list of BJP candidates announced on April 3, Annamalai said, “I have already informed the core committee in writing that I will not contest from any constituency. My name was not even included in the list of possible candidates sent to the high command for approval. So, I was not denied a ticket. The truth is, I have decided not to contest. Since this has become a matter of discussion in the media, I am clarifying the issue here.”
He had also conveyed his decision to Tamil Nadu BJP’s election chief and Union Minister Piyush Goyal a week ago. Annamalai also said that he conveyed this to national general secretary BL Santosh and BJP chief Nitin Nabin.
He said he was grateful to the BJP leadership for respecting his decision and giving him the opportunity to campaign in support of NDA candidates. “There will be a general discussion during the election. I see this as an opportunity to interact with the Prime Minister,” he said during his meeting with Modi.
Earlier, in the midst of his campaign in North Kerala, Annamalai had said in a post on social media platform ‘X’: “I will stand shoulder to shoulder as a Karyakarta and campaign for all our winning BJP and other NDA candidates to ensure NDA wins 210 seats in the upcoming assembly elections.”
